Sable (Martes zibellina) is one of the most valuable species of fur animals. Wild-type sable fur color varies from sandy-yellow to black. Farm breeding and 90 years of directional selection have resulted in a generation of several sable breeds with a completely black coat color. In 2005, an unusually chocolate (pastel) puppy was born in the Puschkinsky State Fur Farm (Russia). We established that the pastel phenotype was inherited as a Mendelian autosomal recessive trait. We performed whole-genome sequencing of the sables with pastel fur color and identified a frameshift variant in the gene encoding membrane-bound tyrosinase-like enzyme (TYRP1). TYRP1 is involved in the stability of the tyrosinase enzyme and participates in the synthesis of eumelanin. These data represent the first reported variant linked to fur color in sables and reveal the molecular genetic basis for pastel color pigmentation. These data are also useful for tracking economically valuable fur traits in sable breeding programs.

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Based on the materials of 23 fur-bearing animal farms of the Russia for different periods of years, a comparative assessment of the reproductive capacity of sable and mink females of standard breeds (wild type) has been carried out. It was established that during intrabreeding differentiation according to the overall color of the hair coat (almost black, black-brown, dark brown and chestnut), the lowest reproduction level is characterized by darker females of sable, which are a significant increase in the number of them, mated with male, but not given offspring (barren females). According to the results of interbreed comparisons of sables and minks, parallelism was found in the variability of the reproductive capacity of females, which is manifested in the fact that, in contrast to relatively light animals, animals that are dark in color are characterized by a greater number of barren females and low fecundity.

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It is important to search for new highly effective multicomponent compounds that are able to influence several of animals’ homeostasis systems simultaneously to improve the physiological adaptation of fur animals to different conditions of nutrition. This is the function of the feed additive Floravit® – a natural bioregulator. The compound is a combination of biologically active ingredients produced by the mycelial fungus Fusarium sambucinum. Studied was the effect of Floravit® on the structure of the skin and hair in adult female sable (Martes zibellina). The scientific and economic experiment was conducted at the JSC “Plemzavod Pushkinskyi” in the Moscow Region during the period of winter fur formation in October-November. The study of the morphological structure of the hair and skin cover was carried out in the chine, side and rump topographical areas. The structure of the guard hairs in the main topographical areas was examined on a scanning electron microscope. The experiment showed that administration of Floravit® per os to adult female sable at a dose of 1.0 ml per head per day throughout the period of winter pelt formation in October-November has an influence on the morphological structure of all the categories of hair on all topographic pelt areas. Animals in the test group exposed to Floravit® exhibited an increase in guide hair length on the chine and side, when compared to controls, by 4.1 mm (p < 0.001) and by 2.8 mm (p < 0.01), respectively. The length of guard hair on the chine, side and rump increased by 8.1, 7.8 and 7.8 mm (p < 0.001), respectively. An increase in down hair length was recorded in all areas of the pelt, when compared to controls, by 13.0, 4.5 and 6.3 mm (p < 0.001). An increase in dermal thickness was recorded in the chine area by 0.7 mm (p < 0.001). The specified changed in the skin and hair structure in sable adult females after using Floravit® have shown a positive influence on the quality of hair cover. As a result, bioregulator Floravit® takes part in the adaptation process of the sable organism to external factors.